As on the eve of every major event, as we get closer to the start of these European Championships, the wait rises for the most famous stars, the players who will in all probability be the main protagonists and who will have to drag the respective nationalities. It's true that the most awaited players don't always determine the final outcome, just think of how decisive someone like Fabio Grosso was in our 2006 world triumph, or remaining in the European arena, who remembers Charisteas, the "bomber" Greek who in 2004 with a goal in the final made possible the biggest surprise in the history of this competition? On the other hand, sometimes it happens that those who are expected to make a difference completely stick to the appointment or in any case do not leave their mark (the example of Messi in the World Cup played so far is symptomatic). But this fifteenth edition of the European championships (the first extended to 24 teams), branded France 2016, promises to be one of the richest in talent and champions in recent years, from the renewed host France to the usual battleships Spain and Germany, from awful underdogs Belgium and Croatia to superstars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Ibrahimovic, Bale and Lewandowski, who start with almost zero chances of final victory, but ready to impress as they did throughout the season with their respective clubs.
So let's begin this roundup of stars, who will begin to be protagonists on the pitch from this Friday, with the opening match between France and Romania, all with the aim of being so until next July 10, the date of the final scheduled at the Stade de France in Paris.
France. It is impossible not to start right from the transalpine national team, with the Bleu who after a few editions return to being one of the favorites not only for playing at home, but for a generational change which in recent years has brought out real phenomena of the european football. Without going around too much, this must be Paul Pogba's European Championship, coach 80, 90, 100 million, with the Juventus player (he should remain Juventus at least next season) who with his technique will be the main artist of a midfield made up of good feet and running, with the various Matuidi, Kantè, Schnelderlin, Sissoko and Cabaye. Also pay attention to the genius and magical foot of Payet, this year the author of cinematic goals both with West Ham and for the national team (see the free-kick with which he decided one of the last friendlies against Cameroon) and it will be interesting to see how much space he will have Coman, the young former Juventus player who, somewhat surprisingly, often found the pitch with the Bayern Munich shirt, showing all his quality. In front the spotlights will be on Antoine Griezmann, the twenty-five year old who showed off in Real Sociedad and literally exploded, especially in terms of scoring, in the last two years with the Atletico Madrid shirt. For him this season 32 total goals and the desire to redeem himself after the disappointment of the Champions League final loss (also with the penalty missed in regulation time, before showing up fearlessly to beat and score the final lottery). With Giroud playing the old-fashioned striker, the offensive department will be completed by the power and speed of Martial, the twenty-year-old Manchester United striker, paid more than 50 million euros to Monaco last summer and ready to establish himself definitively. And to think that Benzema should also have been up front, if the questionable decision had not been made to leave him at home following all the controversies arising from the discovery of red light blackmail against his national teammate Valbuena, also not summoned.
Switzerland. France inserted in a group that is certainly not demanding, where the second strength should be the Switzerland of the Juventus (or perhaps ex) Lichtsteiner, captain of a formation where the two most important names are those of the former Inter player Shaqiri, now at Stoke City and who he has always done well when he is busy with his national team, and Granit Xhaka, the 40-year-old midfielder who will also land in the Premier League from next season, given that Arsenal managed to secure him by paying over 1997 million to Borussia Monchengladbach . Also worth following is the very young (born in XNUMX) Embolo, fast and technical striker for Basel, originally from Cameroon, already noticed by many important clubs after his first, positive appearances in the Champions League and Europa League.
Romania and Albania. Romania and Albania complete the group, where there are no stars but old and new acquaintances of our Serie A do. In the Romanian formation we find the Viola goalkeeper Tatarusanu, the Napoli defender Chiriches, Torje, the attacking midfielder who in the last 4 years has loaned various teams between Spain and Turkey but still belongs to Udinese and Alibec, the star striker with spring of Inter's victory in the Viareggio Tournament in 2011 (and 2 appearances for the first team as well). In Albania Hysaj, fresh from the first excellent championship in Naples, Memushaj, immovable owner of Pescara who is playing the playoffs on his own these days to climb to Serie A against Trapani, but also Ajeti from Frosinone and Basha from Como.
England. Group B is that of England, one of those who have failed spectacularly too many times at the big events, but who this year come up with all the credentials to try and get to the end. To tell the truth, it was also competitive at the Mindiali two years ago, when however it managed to be eliminated together with Italy in a group in which Uruguay and Costa Rica advanced, but Jamie Vardy and Harry were not ahead Kane, 24 and 25 goals in the last Premier League, the first hero of Leicester (but who is "betraying" his fans these days by accepting the courtship of Arsenal), the second the one who led Tottenham to believe in him until three days from the end. It's unlikely that they'll play together (at least from the start) and we have to see how they'll behave in their first major international event, but for two who live for goals like them it won't be a problem (as they've already done amply in the last preparation friendlies) . England which, despite the absence of the unfortunate Welbeck, presents perhaps the strongest attacking department of the whole European Championship, certainly the most complete, given that it also has Rooney, Sturridge, Sterling and the baby Rashford at its disposal, 18 years, passed in a few months from Manchester United's youth team to become the owner of the first team to the sound of goals (and taking advantage of some injuries and bad performance of those in front). As with the club, he immediately made his debut with goals also for the national team and a guaranteed future (how long will we have to wait for a Rashford to come out even from the youth sector of some of our teams?). After the era of Lampard and Gerrard, now in the middle of the field there is room for the quality and dynamism of the various Wilshere, Lallana, Barkley and Alli.
Russia, Slovakia and Wales. Behind the English there is a great balance and struggle (theoretically for second place) between Russia, where at the moment the Zenit striker, Artem Dzjuba, seems to be the most dangerous, the Slovakia of the "Italians" Hamsik, the leader, and Kucka, pivots of a midfield where Weiss also features, who also passed from Pescara, and Wales of Gareth Bale, who has just concluded perhaps his best season with the Real shirt. Bale who with his national team could also have some more space than when he plays with Ronaldo & company and be even more devastating. In the Welsh midfield there is no shortage of quality, with the immense class of Aaron Ramsey, assisted by Allen (Liverpool) and the fresh England champion King.
Germany. Group C should be dominated by Germany, with Poland and Ukraine (the two hosts of the last edition four years ago) battling for second place and Northern Ireland absolute Cinderella. Germany which has an abundance of champions in every part of the field, but which will not have a potential star of the tournament, Marco Reus, with the Dortmund player forced to miss this appointment due to injury, after missing out on the last World Cup, then won by his companions. The German national team which presents some innovations compared to the last major events, but which still bases its defensive department on Neuer between the posts and Hummels (next season he will almost certainly also be club mates in Bayern), while in midfield, with Schweinsteiger slightly in phase waning, everything will turn from the feet of Kroos, Draxler (the dream of the last Juventus transfer market) and Khedira (plus some interesting young players like Sanè from Schalke). The true strength of the Germans will come as always from their midfielders Ozil, Muller, Schurrle and Gotze (assist-man and match winner of the final of the last World Cup) with the latter who after the last few months almost always relegated to the bench by Guardiola, will want to prove to his former coach that he was wrong not to rely on him. Among the strikers, a role left somewhat vacant after Klose's farewell, two from the old guard have been called up, Podolski and Mario Gomez, both now in Turkey, the former at Galatasaray, the latter, after the problems in Florence, back top scorer in league-winning Besiktas.
Ukraine, Poland and Northern Ireland. In Ukraine, the prominent player is Konopljanka, who lifted the Europa League a few weeks ago with a Sevilla shirt, while Poland for a few years now can count on Robert Lewandowski, at the moment probably the number "9" more strong in the world with Luis Suarez. The former Borussia striker, 42 goals in 51 official matches in 2015/2016, will face many Bayern teammates against Germany, while in the ranks of his national team in attack he could be helped by Milik, the 22-year-old which several clubs have set their sights on after the goals scored against Ajax, which has always been a hotbed of talent, in the last two seasons. In Poland, many will also be able to focus on Zielinski, the young offensive midfielder from Udinese in whom there is strong interest from Napoli after the good plays shown in the last championship with the Empoli shirt. Zielinski who is not the only Serie A player engaged in the European Championships with Poland, given that the defense will be commanded by the grenade Glik, while the experience and dynamism of Blaszczykowski will be important in the frontline, who arrived last summer at Fiorentina on loan from Borussia Dortmund. In Northern Ireland the most famous element is Steven Davis, midfielder of Southampton, but in the squad there is also the striker Kyle Lafferty, one of the many who passed in Zamparini's Palermo in recent years.
Spain. Group D is probably the one with the highest level, given that together with Spain, as usual one of the favorites for the final victory, there are also Croatia, Turkey and the Czech Republic. The Red Furies, holders of the trophy for two editions but veterans from the misstep at the World Cup in Brazil, this time too they present themselves with, on paper, the best squad of all the suitors, with a lot of quality in every role, and the list of those excluded from the 23 finals is scary. Isco, Saul, Juan Mata, Diego Costa, Fernando Torres, Callejon, Jesus Navas, Santi Cazorla, Borja Valero, Carvajal, is not in fact the list of those who left for France, but of those left at home, for various reasons (the mostly technical and not due to physical problems) from coach Del Bosque, many illustrious victims and some risky choices, with the outcome of the field that will prove the Spanish selector right or not. In fact, it is difficult to share the renunciations of many of the names written previously, especially among the midfielders, with Soriano del Villarreal and the Real boss Lucas Vazquez who in the end were preferred to complete a department with the fixed points Iniesta, Fabregas (despite the subdued season), Koke and Thiago Alcantara. With the certainties Pedro and David Silva, ahead of the exclusion that made the most noise was that of Diego Costa, while, thanks to the excellent performances with Celta and Athletic Bilbao, Nolito and Aduriz were rewarded, perhaps less high-sounding names but with Safe. But in the end, also said of a defensive line that can count on Sergio Ramos (currently the number one in the world in his role), the "enemy" of the club Piquè, Jordi Alba and Juanfran (unjustly decisive in the negative in the last Champions League final), in the end the brightest star could be Alvaro Morata, who after two seasons in black and white became from Real's reserve to one of the players most sought after by the big names in the next transfer market.
Croatia. Croatia, apart from the classic bigs, is undoubtedly the strongest formation together with (or immediately behind) Belgium, with the first 13/14 players who can play it against the most popular opponents and some elements of global value. Captained by Srna, the Croatians in midfield can count on two currently among the best interpreters in the world, Modric and Rakitic (during the season split between Real and Barça in La Liga), plus the talent, not fully expressed so far, of Kovacic and Brozovic, one of the best in Inter last season together with the other Nerazzurri Perisic, the one who with his accelerations more than anyone is able to jump the man and create numerical superiority. Among the midfielders, the one who is considered the new champion ready to leave Dinamo Zagreb has been called up (among the options there has also been talk of some Italian team), i.e. Marko Pjaca, while two other "Italians" will think about scoring goals. the Juventus Mandzukic and Kalinic, one of the surprises of the latest Fiorentina. To complete the attack department another already seen in Italy even if in a lesser form, Cop, now in Malaga on loan from Cagliari, and Kramaric, another one who was talked about very well, but seems to have gotten a bit lost (in January moved from Leicester to Hoffenheim and therefore did not fully participate in the historic feat of the Foxes). Croatia which completes its colony of "Italians" with Strinic, Badelj and above all Vrsaljko, with this European Championship which could become another showcase for the full-back from Sassauolo.
Türkiye and the Czech Republic. In Turkey the key elements are Arda Turan, back from a season that was anything but a protagonist in Barcelona but the undisputed leader of his team, Sahin of Borussia Dortmund and Calhanoglu of Bayer Leverkusen, one of the most interesting young players of the last three championships in the Bundesliga. In the shortlist of 23 also the full-back new Inter signing, Erkin, while in midfield they can't do without the experience of Selòuk Inan, Burak Yilmaz has to think about the goals, who has been playing in China since January. Czech Republic, which arrives at these European Championships at the end of two years in which it collected excellent results, between qualifications (it finished first in the group with Turkey and in which Holland was eliminated) and friendlies, but its strength is based all about the group, given that the symbol is still the 36-year-old Tomas Rosicky, practically never used in the last season at Arsenal, in addition to the goalkeeper Cech. The starting striker will be Lafata, who eliminated Lazio from the Europa League last March with his Sparta Prague, inflicting a sensational 0-3 draw at the Olimpico.
Belgium. Group E is that of the Azzurri, but the great expectation is all for Belgium, a national team that calling outsiders would be an understatement, and for Zlatan Ibrahimovic, in his last competition with the Sweden shirt. Then there would also be Ireland. On an individual level, Belgium could venture to define the most talented national team of all, a generation with enormous potential, but not always expressed, despite first place in the qualifying group. Belgium who was already awaited with great interest at the last World Cup, where he reached the quarterfinals being eliminated by Argentina and leaving the feeling that he could do even more, but now he is presenting himself at these European Championships with two more years of experience, a few young more mature and others on the launch pad. The main star is Chelsea attacking midfielder Eden Hazard, last year elected best player in the Premier League, with him in midfield a mix of technique, dynamism and insertions, where the various Mertens (also used in the national team more in the current match than since beginning), Fellaini, Ferreira Carrasco (who split the second half of the last Champions League final) and Nainggolan are among the best performers around. Witsel and Dembelè will also think about giving the right amount, in addition to the all-round Roma fan, while another on whose feet the fate of this fantastic group will depend is Kevin de Bruyne, bought last summer from Manchester City for around 74 million euros from Wolfsburg. Perhaps an excessive figure, but, in a negative season for the English club, the 24-year-old red haired man still showed plays like an absolute champion. In front of all this blessing, Lukaku (25 goals this year with Everton), Origi, who grew up in the second half of the season with Liverpool, and Benteke, the most experienced, despite being only a born in 1990 (the other two are '93 and '95), but stopped in the last few months by one too many injuries. Also keep an eye out for Batshuayi, the 23-year-old Marseille striker, who showed off with his goals in the last season despite the bad results of his club and probably a valuable piece of the next transfer market (and already scored against Italy in a few months' friendly does). Belgian international who will however have to do without his captain and leader Vincent Kompany, out of action due to injury, but also remain equipped in defense, with the various Vertonghen, Vermaelen and Alderweireld in front of security Courtois (and Mignolet is no less).
Sweden. One of the most awaited characters is, as always, Ibrahimovic, the genius, who will turn 35 next October, but who seems to be improving over the years, becoming ever stronger and more complete, fresh from one of his best seasons, with 50 goals in 51 official matches with PSG. Ibra who has already said goodbye to the French club and will soon announce the name of his new team (regardless of the economic offers, to make his career perfect, after the three Italian experiences, the year a bit like this in Barcelona and the four, probably excessive, spent in Ligue 1, at least a couple of seasons in the Premier League atmosphere, should be close to United, are the most right thing he should do). The problem in the national team is that he will once again find himself alone, he will have to do everything himself, with the knowledge that he won't be able to carry his team much further, because qualifying is one thing, and his magic may be enough, but when even someone like him reaches the final stage, if not supported, in the end he must give up. It's a real pity that someone like him has never had the chance to play it seriously even with his own national team, in which he is revered almost like a God, but it is clear that with the number 10 shirt on the shoulders of the good Ekdal (Zlatan has chosen the 21), Hiljemark from Palermo to invent and Guidetti as the main offensive alternative, fate seems sealed this time too.
Ireland. Ireland always difficult to deal with and with Shane Long returning from two positive seasons in the attack of Southampton, but if the most representative player is still the indestructible Robbie Keane, on 8th July 36 years (the last four spent in the ranks of Los Angeles Galaxy), record holder of appearances (143) and goals (67) for his country, it is evident that something is missing from the national team in the past also coached by our Trapattoni.
Portugal. The last grouping is that of Portugal, or rather that of Cristiano Ronaldo, who happened together with Austria, Iceland and Hungary. CR7, 56 goals in 125 matches with his country's shirt (where he doesn't keep up the averages he records with club teams, where he has more goals than appearances), in not perfect physical condition, he still decided on his third Champions League on a penalty kick and after a short regenerative holiday in Ibiza he is ready to try to bring the Lusitanians as far as possible (which would also help him to recover the Ballon d'Or, but we also need to see what Messi and Suarez will combine in the Copa America). A bit like for Ibra, the same goes for the Portuguese, rarely supported properly by his teammates in major events (and the feeling that Portugal missed the right train 12 years ago, with the final lost at home against Greece). The Portuguese national team has always had quality and good players and this time, in the middle of the field together with the more experienced Moutinho, will showcase the 22-year-old from Valencia Andrè Gomes (very courted by Juvenuts) and the 18-year-old Renato Sanches, from 1st July officially a new Bayern Munich player, who snatched him from Benfica for a figure which, including all bonuses, could be close to 80 million. Portugal which, in addition to Ronaldo, relies on the dribbling of Nani, who has been with Fenerbahce for a year, and on the unpredictability (often even for himself) of Quaresma, also in Turkey, at Besiktas. The historical problem of the first striker with many goals remains, this time they try with Eder from Lille (and ex Sporting Braga), but with a very affordable group and a strong Cristiano Ronaldo Portugal has every chance of making a good impression.
Austria. The second strength is Austria, one of the revelations in the qualifying process, both for the game expressed and for the continuity of results. The two best-known faces are Arnautovic, who from being a crazy and somewhat superficial boy at the time of Inter's treble, first at Werder Bremen and then above all at Stoke City (this year 11 goals, some very beautiful) has become a true, and the multipurpose Alaba. But the strength of the Austrians is the group, in which other well-known names are the full-back Fuchs, a fundamental element of the Leicester of miracles, and the central defender Dragovic, in force at Dinamo Kiev but often nominated at every transfer window, while in front of the goals Harnik (Stuttgart) and Janko (Basel) will have to bring them.
Iceland and Hungary. We close with the fairy tale of Iceland and Hungary, in the Nordic national team the reference player is Sigurdsson, for four years the protagonist in the Premier League between Tottenham and Swansea, another valid player is Finnbogason, Augsburg striker in Germany after making avalanche of goals between 2012 and 2014 in the Dutch league with Heerenveen. In Hungary, on the other hand, the best known (and most difficult to write) name is that of Dzsudzsak, Bursaspor's offensive midfielder, but who was talked about a lot when he was in PSV until 2011. But these two national teams, for which obviously the victory is already being in this final phase, they also have two good stories to tell, with the Nordics who among their 23 also have Gudjohnsen, who at almost 36 has the possibility of facing an event of this kind also with the shirt of the his country, after having played from 2000 to 2009 for teams of the caliber of Chelsea (54 goals for the Blues) and Barcelona, before touring a dozen clubs between Europe and China and ending up in Molde in Norway. But the best of all is Gabor Kiraly, the Magyar goalkeeper, with a past between the Premier League and the Bundesliga, defined as "the last romantic in pajamas" because he never abandoned the custom of taking the field in gray sweatpants from the suit, who with his saves was decisive in Hungary's return to a final stage of a European Championship 44 years after their last appearance and who at 40 will be in all respects the grandfather of this edition.
Italy. We have not forgotten Italy, but finding the stars in this national team is not an easy operation, despite the fact that, in front of the Juventus defensive block, there is no shortage of good quality players, such as Candreva, Florenzi (certainly the one with the best performance from two years now), El Shaarawy, Giaccarini, Bernardeschi and Insigne, all elements capable of jumping over man and with a "European" pace. Certainly few phenomena come out of the youth sectors (and here one doesn't ask for an Iniesta a year) and the knockouts of Marchisio and Verratti are very heavy, but it must also be said that one with Giovinco's technique (agree that the Mls at sometimes it seems like an amateur tournament) and a functional one like Bonaventura (one of the best in our Serie A despite an often embarrassing Milan side) would have been fine in a national team that could see people like De Rossi as starters (no more dynamic than Totti by now), the good Parolo and Thiago Motta with the number 10.
